Taking Care of You
by peace4people
Summary: Reid is sick and the team looks out for him while in Washington on a new case. Things start to look up but then Reid takes a turn for the worse and winds up in the hospital. Reid-centric, whump, team bonding and love.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Working on the next chapters of my other two stories. One of them is almost over so I thought I would start another project because who doesn't enjoy a sick!Reid story? Please review.**

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_Sickness shows us what we are._

_-Latin Proverb_

"What's the matter with you?" asked Morgan starring at Reid who had his head down and his eyes closed. Underneath him was his book bag which he was currently using as a pillow.

"Nothing." He mumbled turning his head the other direction so Derek couldn't see him. Unfortunately for Reid moving away from Morgan only made him face someone else.

"What's wrong Spence?" JJ asked in an angelic voice. He soon realized the only way he could escape the questioning was if he lifted his head up and stopped trying to take a quick nap before Hotch showed up and gave out orders.

"Nothing's wrong." He mumbled as he went over and poured some coffee a few feet away. He could feel his hand shaking from the weight of the cup but he shielded it easily with his other on. When he got back to his desk Reid moaned as he sat down not realizing that everyone could hear him. They all exchanged a quick worried look before Morgan took the initiative and went to talk to him.

"Reid, talk to me kid. What's up?" Reid stared down at his coffee.

"I'm just tired, that's all." Morgan knew that "just tired" was a lie but he didn't want to pry so he let the subject drop and decided to go and visit with Garcia. Reid held his head in his hands and gently made circular motions in an attempt to dull the throb he had begun to experience. Suddenly something else began to ache; it was something that would be harder to hide from everyone. In attempt to ignore it and to convince himself that he was wrong Reid cautiously took a sip of his coffee. The sugar – which usually pleased him – was so sweet he could feel his mouth salivate as the grains touched his tongue. Not wanting to even look at its contents anymore Reid casually pushed the mug away. He allowed one of his hands to move towards his stomach where he rotated it in small circles trying to calm it.

"Reid?" he looked up to see JJ standing outside the conference room. "I've been calling your name for a minute, we're about to discuss a new case."

He slowly stood up and made an uneasy journey to the round table. Without talking he took a seat as far away from everyone as possible. Lucky for him it was close to the door if he needed to make a quick escape. He shivered uncomfortably as a blast of cold air hit him. Instantly he wished that he had chosen a seat that wasn't under the air vent. The freezing breeze only caused him to feel clammier than before.

"Can you tell anything about the UnSub from that?" Hotch asked the boy, his boss' voice brought him back into reality. Reid looked lost and he could tell Aaron was annoyed.

"I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" Reid asked clearing his throat.

"Pay attention. This case is already hard enough; I need the team's full attention. We can't afford for anyone to be slacking." His face wrinkled and Reid sunk low in his chair as he felt bad for letting Hotch down, "Now, look up at the screen and tell me what you see."

"It's a chess board. Where was this found?" Asked Reid examining the picture on the screen.

"Have you just not been listening this entire time?" Reid didn't answer, "This chess board belongs to Gary Klein, and we have reason to believe that he might be our UnSub. Is there anything on this board that can tell you if that is a viable theory?" Reid nodded and felt his head throb.

"The way he uses the King, it's..." Reid swallowed hard trying to not vomit, "Excuse me."

Everyone watched as Reid's face visibly paled and he shot up from the table. Morgan exchanged a look with Hotch and nodded standing up. He followed the path Reid had taken and walked casually into the men's bathroom.

"Hey Morgan." Reid greeted as he applied soap to his wet hands.

"What was that?" Morgan asked raising an eyebrow and pointing a thumb behind him in the general direction of the conference room.

"What was what?" asked Reid mimicking the eyebrow raise and washing off the soap. "I just had to use the restroom." After a few seconds of rubbing he reached out and used his elbow to turn off the faucet. He let his hands drip into the sink before reaching out for a paper towel. "Did you know that you should wash your hands with hot water for…"

"Stop Reid." Spencer gave him a questioning look, as if Morgan was the one acting weird and not him, "Are you trying to tell me that you just had to go to the bathroom and that you aren't hiding the fact your sick?"

Reid looked up at the ceiling and thought about it for a second, "Uh…yeah."

"Kid…" Morgan began to say.

"Seriously, I'm fine. Let's get back to the team. The guy who y'all think is the UnSub isn't our UnSub. He's too reckless, he'd never be able to dispose of the body the way our actual UnSub did." Reid walked out the door and Morgan quickly followed. When they got back to the room Reid started quickly spurting out his thoughts about the suspect. Everyone looked over at Morgan who just shrugged indicating that nothing had happened in the bathroom. Reid, who quickly noticed turned around to face him.

"What?" he asked as Morgan stared at him.

"Nothing, it's just…" he didn't know what to say so he looked around at everyone else to help him.

"We're worried about you Reid." Emily finally spoke up, "You looked a little ill when you ran out the door."

"I'm fine. I just had too much coffee this morning." JJ could feel her heart sink at the lie. She and Morgan had seen him when he pushed away his drink earlier that morning.

"Reid?" He snapped his head around to look at Hotch, "I want you to go home."

"No." Everyone stared shocked at his argumentative state.

"Excuse me?" asked Aaron leaning forward and frowning.

"I don't need to go, I feel fine and this case needs our team." Reid said sitting down.

"That wasn't a question that was a direct order. Go home Agent Reid." But Reid ignored him and started to talk again.

"The UnSub we're looking for is incredibly intelligent but graduated bottom of their class because of home issues. Where is this case located?" No one answered him. They were unable to speak after what had just happened. Reid was deliberately disobeying Aaron Hotchner.

"Washington state." Aaron spoke after a few minutes, as if watching a tennis match everyone's head flew to Aaron and then back to Reid when he started to talk again – they followed the action as the two FBI agents talked to each other.

"What part?"

"Seattle."

"How many murders?" No one commented that every question Reid was asking had been previously discussed.

"Nine in the last three months. Every ten days, next one will be in three days."

"When are we leaving?"

"An hour." Reid nodded and got up to pack his Go-bag. Everyone stayed still until Aaron looked at them, "Are you guys coming to Washington too? Or are you just going to sit here with those stunned expressions?"

Everyone quickly pushed away from the table and walked swiftly out of the room. Emily looked at Morgan and mumbled "Weird."

"Seriously." Morgan said as he nodded in agreement.

"What's weird?" asked Penelope Garcia walking up to them.

"Reid just disobeyed Hotch, but then Hotch didn't do anything about it." Morgan said informing her of everything that had just happened.

"That is weird. Poor Reid, I hope isn't feeling too bad." She said sympathetically, "Being sick is no fun at all. Do you know where he is?"

"Who, Reid?" asked Prentiss, Garcia nodded. "No, sorry."

"Well if you see him tell him I hope he feels better." Garcia smiled.

"He'll just want to know why he should be feeling better because 'he feels fine.' He's like a child when he gets sick." Said Morgan clearly annoyed.

"Can you blame him? Do you really like when people fuss over you when you get sick?" asked Derek.

"Yeah." Said Garcia, "You get like everything you want. People wait at your beck and call, it's terrific. My mother used to give me something special whenever I got sick. I would beg kids to sneeze on me."

Emily gave her an odd look, her mother had never taken care of her when she got sick. What else had she missed out on? "Well I for one hate it."

"What do you hate?" asked Reid walking up the trio. He slid his bag off of his shoulder and let it collide gently with the ground.

"Mushrooms." Emily answered quickly thinking on her feet.

"Ugh, me too." Reid said making a disgusted face. Everyone looked down as the boy placed one arm across his stomach as if protecting it. Garcia looked at the boy concerned; she swore she could see him shaking.

"You feeling okay Reid?" she asked unable to resist asking the question.

"Yeah." He mumbled as he looked down at his feet and leaned back against his desk,

"You can tell me if you're not hun, you just look so pale and awful."

"Thanks Garcia." He said sarcastically and snatched his bag off the ground, Reid stalked away with his Go-bag swung over one shoulder.

"He looks like shit." Morgan said as they all watched Reid go into the boy's bathroom clutching his stomach. The two others nodded agreeing.

"Come on," Morgan said placing a hand on Emily's shoulder, "We have to get ready to go." She nodded knowingly and the two walked away, glancing at the men's restroom curiously as they passed it. Even if he didn't want them to, they all worried about Reid's health.

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**A/N: I wanted to make this a one-shot but I didn't want to rush it into one chapter. If there seems to be enough interest I think I will make this a ten plus chapter story. Let me know what you all think please. : )**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, keep them coming please. I am, for sure, going to make this at least ten chapters. I just worked out the entire plot.**

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Reid sat in the airplane's bathroom. His head resting heavily on the toilet's brim and his hand wrapped around the basin. When he thought he might be finished throwing up Reid gently laid back. The cool granite floor felt soothing against his burning flesh. He wanted to sit there for hours but knew that if he sat there for only another minute someone would come to check on him.

Trying not to jostle his head or stomach Reid slowly stood up, splashed freezing water on his face and exited the restroom. Everyone's heads quickly snapped away before Reid could catch them all looking at him. Trying to act calm he nonchalantly walked over to the couch and sat down with a giant 'humph.' He opened to the page of the case file that everyone else seemed to be on and followed along as Morgan began to continue what he had been saying, "Reid knocked out our last idea. What else do we have on this guy?"

"Might not be a guy." Reid's voice was hoarse from the acid that he had expelled from his stomach. He coughed, once, trying to rid the harsh noise but it didn't help. "I know that most serial killers are men but look at this picture. What do you notice?"

He slid a photo onto the table and Emily flipped it right side up and examined it. Everything seemed normal until she saw what Reid had noticed. "Everything is clean, perfect almost."

"Right, men don't usually clean up – women do. Plus the men who were killed might not be as random as we first thought. The way the victims were murdered all coincide with a crime of passion, which, are more common amongst women than they are men." Said Reid looking at the team who all nodded knowing Reid was correct.

"So, assuming that this is a girl – what else can we tell?" asked Hotch looking up from the folder.

"All the men are blondes. Maybe it's a fetish?" Emily suggested, "You know, like she goes for a blonde, he breaks her heart and then she kills him?"

Reid shook his head, "The murders are too perfectly spaced for that to be the case." As he spoke he started to feel the effects of moving his head. It felt so airy, like someone had popped a bottle of Champaign and all the bubbles were being released into his cranium.

"Reid?" he looked in the direction of where the person who was talking was but didn't know who had actually said his name. He mumbled something but wasn't sure what it was, "Reid?"

His head was swimming but things were coming back into focus, and he could now place the voice as one belonging to Rossi. "What?"

"Are there such things as chess conventions?" Not wanting to make a repeat mistake Reid verbally spoke instead of moving his head.

"Yes. There are usually ones that travel and then world conventions held in one location. Are we back to thinking this is Larry Mein?"

"Gary Klein." Hotch corrected while raising an eyebrow in concern, Reid had never forgotten anyone's name before, especially one belonging to a victim or UnSub "And no. But I'm wondering if our new UnSub plays chess. Every single one of the victims had a chess board in their houses too."

"There is no new UnSub." Reid said.

"So are you saying this actually is Gary Klein?" Asked Morgan, "Earlier you said…"

"No, I'm saying that Hotch just messed up the wording. There is no such thing as a new UnSub on the same case. Think about it, 'UnSub' means Unknown Subject. Therefore there is never a new Unknown Subject just the same one we have yet to identify."

"What's wrong with him?" Prentiss whispered to Morgan who was sitting next to her; he shrugged and watched as Aaron stood up from his seat.

"Reid, let's have a talk." He gently grabbed the upper half of Reid's arm and pulled the boy into a standing position. The two agents walked towards the back of the plane where, if they whispered, their conversation would be unheard.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" asked Hotch smoothly.

"No." Reid answered too fast for Aaron's liking. "I don't feel sick."

"I never said that you were feeling sick. But are you?" Aaron raised a questioning eyebrow.

"No, like I said, I'm fine." Said Reid leaning his head against one of the cabinets that was stocked with first aid supplies such as band-aids and Tylenol. Reid so badly wanted to reach in their and take a couple pills for his headache but there was no way he could manage that without being caught; on top of that he wasn't sure his stomach could handle anything. Plus he wasn't really sick and only people who were sick took medicine. He just hadn't slept well, that's all. He was perfectly healthy.

"Reid, I think you are hiding something and our team can't operate when one of its agents is acting the way you are. Do you understand?" Aaron asked in a stern whisper as to not alert attention. Reid nodded his head but like earlier everything began to blur. Things danced around him and he instantly reached out for Hotch's shoulder to balance himself.

"Easy kid, easy." Slowly he lowered the other agent down until they were both situated on the ground. The gasp Reid made when everything had started going out of focus had caught the attention of the entire cabin. Everyone watched as the two agents slowly maneuvered themselves to the ground. Derek was the first one up; he went to the other side of the plane and filled up a glass of water. He brought it over to Reid who had his knees drawn to his chest and hands wrapped around his head. Aaron had one had protectively on the boy's leg; the other one was rubbing his back softly. The two were situated around the corner just far enough so they weren't visible from where everyone else was sitting.

"Here" Morgan offered the water to them and Aaron reached out his right hand to grab it. Reid didn't make any sign that he currently wanted the beverage so Hoch sat it next to them.

"Thanks." Came a muffled voice as Reid stayed in the same position. Morgan was about to leave but a shaking hand shot up and grabbed his pant's leg.

"Hey, Morgan. Please tell me that you and Hotch were the only two people who saw that." Morgan leaned his head back and saw that everyone still had their eyes focused on the action that was taking place.

"Yeah kid, I think so." There was no point in getting him worked up, it's not like the other agents would mention seeing him nearly pass out like that.

His stomach flipped and he wished that there was an easy way for him to go to the bathroom but he was still trying to convince everyone this was just a headache. Migraines, people got migraines all the time. It was a flawless plan. He would admit to having a migraine and no one would question him anymore about being sick. Deep down he knew he was in for a rough couple of days. A flu bug had been going around his apartment and he was pretty sure he somehow caught it. Probably from the handle that opened the mail room. Almost everyone touched that every single day. Someone who was sick, or just a carrier of the disease, must have gotten their mail right before Reid did. Then he must have rubbed his eye before he had a chance to rub the germs off. His analytical brain went through the possible scenarios. But he had gotten the flu he wasn't going to admit it because he hated the attention; he hated people fawning over him. So the plan was simple Reid would tell everyone how he got migraines all the time as a child – sometimes as an adult too – and this was just a bad one, then he would pop a few pills, drink some water and relax. The next morning they would all think he had slept it off; he would be fine with taking care of himself if it was the flu.

"Sorry." Said Reid finally looking up. He squinted as the bright light hit his eyes.

"You have nothing to apologies for, you're sick." Said Morgan as he continued to stand above them.

"I have a migraine, that's all. I should have told you about them before. I used to get them all the time as a kid and into college. Sometimes I'll still get them but they usually aren't this bad." His voice sounded so sincere, nobody – not even two profilers – would be able to tell that the boy was lying through his teeth.

"I've never read anything in your records about migraines." Said Hotch sounding slightly suspicious but Reid knew the one thing that would dispel any questions either of them had.

"My mother would just tell me to sleep them off. She thought doctors were a waste of time." All Reid had to do was mention Diana and no one asked question, the topic was to sensitive and no body wanted to dabble in his life, "If it's alright with you I'll just go to sleep once we land and tomorrow morning I'll be back to work."

"Of course." Said Hotch nodding and finally removing his hand that had been resting on Spencer's back.

"Thanks. I promise I'll let you know the next time I get one." Reid smiled and with the help of Aaron he stood up and walked back into the cabin of the plane. He immediately slumped back onto the couch. His head was still feeling hazy and his stomach was still doing flips but he had an excuse for it now, even if it wasn't the truth. There was no way they would find out.

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**A/N: Please review and I'll update faster. : ) **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: It's good to know there are so many people out there who enjoy sick Reid and that it's not just me.**

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"Reid, the hotel is waiting for you to check in. If there's any problem…" Aaron began but Reid held up his hand for his boss to stop talking. The man was one of the least predictable on the team but Spencer could easily tell what he was about to say.

"If there's a problem I'll call you." Reid smiled a goofy grin and bent down to grab his bag. When he stood back up the blood rushed out of his head and he reached out for someone to hold onto. JJ was the one nearest him but she had her back turned and was so shocked by the sudden movement not only was the breath knocked out of her but she fell over too. Morgan was the one who ended up not only saving Reid but also JJ from hitting the cement ground where the plane had landed.

Aaron quickly joined him by pulling JJ from Morgan's grip and setting her upright, "You okay?" she nodded and began to breathe normally. Morgan was holding Reid in his arms.

"Thanks." He smiled and took a step back. He pulled on his sweater and ran a hand over the smooth fabric in an attempt to remove the wrinkles from it.

"What happened?" asked Morgan walking over to Reid.

"I tripped." Morgan looked down at the surrounding area, it was smooth. There was not a single crack or rock for the boy to trip on. Reid noticed this and pointed down to his shoes. Luckily somewhere during the fall one of his sneakers' laces had become undone. Morgan still didn't want to buy it but he had no evidence that the boy was lying so he had no room to fight him.

"You sure you'll be okay going to the hotel by yourself?" asked Morgan giving Reid a questioning look that the young agent wasn't able to see. Sometimes Reid didn't like how Morgan wore sunglasses, he didn't like that Morgan could see everything his eyes were saying but he couldn't see what Morgan's eyes were saying. He couldn't hide.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Said Reid swinging his fallen bag over his shoulder.

"Alright, if you're sure kid."

"I'm sure." Reid said not sounding very convincing.

"We meet tomorrow morning at eight Reid, we'll see you there." Said Hotch looking at Reid through a pair of dark shades. Everyone and their stupid sunglasses, he couldn't tell what they were thinking. Reid made a mental note that he needed to get a pair himself.

"Get some sleep Reid." Said Emily smiling and the team walked away towards the cars the police department had sent for them.

Reid followed them and got into the third SUV's driver seat. He shouldn't be driving, he was in no condition to drive and he knew it. With one shaking hand he adjusted the mirror, pushed the seat back and started the engine. After the other two cars left Reid buckled his seatbelt and gently pushed down on the gas pedal. His head ached and he couldn't concentrate on the road in front of him. Reid sneezed and brought the sleeve of his sweater up to rub his nose. He sniffled and came to the stop at a red light. Thirty seconds later Reid heard a car horn blaring behind him. _I must've fallen asleep_, said Reid yawning, _how many accidents happened every year because the driver fell asleep at the wheel? I have a statistic for that. I know I do._ His head hurt too much to even think about statistics now. Reid inched his car forward until he saw a McDonalds on the corner. He approached it knowing that he could easily get coffee from the fast food restaurant and that perhaps that could wake up his exhausted mind. He pulled into a parking space and cut the engine.

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His phone was ringing but he didn't know where it was. For that matter he didn't know where he was. Everything was dark as he fumbled around the car looking for the ringing devise.

"Hello?" he asked answering his phone and coughing. He could tell that he sounded awful but he was more concerned in finding out where he was and how he got there.

"Oh thank god. I got him! Hotch, Reid answered his cell." Why was the person on the other line yelling?

"Who is this?" asked Reid rubbing his eyes and becoming slightly more alert. He recognized the voice but he was having a hard time placing it to a person.

"This is Emily Prentiss. Reid, where the hell are you?" That was a good question. Reid looked around and saw a sign for McDonalds_. I must have fallen asleep_, he thought while stretching.

"Sorry, I was hungry and just went out to grab a bite to eat." Since when had he become so good at lying? Probably since…Reid shivered, he knew the answer. Tobias Hankle made him become the best liar in the world.

"The hotel says that you never checked in. We got worried and tried calling you several times but no one answered. We were worried that the UnSub had gotten to you or something else had happened. Where are you exactly?"

"Just at some local place, I don't know what it's called." She wasn't buying it, "Do you guys want to come join me? I just got here. After the plane landed I ran some errands, I went to the store and bought my usual migraine remedies and now I just stopped by this place."

The best lies didn't have too much detail, he had the perfect combination. Enough to not have any holes in his story but not too much that someone would be able to tell everything that had happened. A lie with too much information would include the name of the store and the items he bought. "We got something on our way to the hotel. Just get back here when you can."

"Alright, I'll be back there soon." Reid hung up the phone without saying anything else. Halfway through their conversation Reid could feel his stomach flipping and now it had decided to revolt. He opened the door and stumbled out of the car.

Reid was doubled over and dry heaving, he hadn't eaten all day so there was nothing to get rid of. When he finished Reid sat down on the cold concrete and groaned. The next few days were going to be the most miserable days of his life. His head was pounding, his stomach aching and even the hot air felt cold to him.

"This sucks." Reid mumbled to himself as he rolled his head backwards trying to relieve some of the pain.

"I know Pretty Boy." Reid saw an upside down Derek Morgan standing behind him.

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**A/N: Hope you liked. Question: why do I get sick when I write sick!Reid? Is this a sign that I should stop? Haha. If you get a chance your reviews make my day and I would love to get some feedback. : )**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Alright kiddos, here we go. : ) Small reference to one of my other stories where Reid is unwell in Alaska, you don't need to have read it…but you should. : )**

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"You feel any better after all that throwing up?" Morgan asked kneeling next to Reid. The boy shook his head not wanting to talk. His stomach was still churning and he knew that if he opened his mouth words wouldn't be the only thing coming out. When Reid didn't answer after awhile Derek decided to forget kneeling and moved into a sitting position on the ground. Reid wanted to curl up into a fetal position, his arms wrapped tightly around his aching abdomen and his head gently in Morgan's lap but something was stopping him. He wondered what it was and finally concluded it was the fact that he was lying to Morgan. For all Derek knew this was still just an incredibly bad migraine, the tiredness, headache, nausea – those were all migraine symptoms. Everything else wasn't.

Finally Reid couldn't stand it any longer, he let his head fall into Morgan's lap and he drew his legs tightly to his chest, both arms holding them closely. Instantly Morgan brought one hand up and began to stroke his hair, his hand ran down his face, over his neck and across his lower back. It was the way his mother used to take care of him. Morgan's hand froze when it touched Reid's cheek, "Do you have a fever?"

"No…just a migraine…you don't get a fever with a migraine." Said Reid half asleep as he rolled his head over to look up at Morgan whose piercing eyes looked at him suspiciously. He allowed his left hand to move its way up to Reid's forehead where he could more easily feel the heat radiating from the boy's head. At the touch of Morgan's hand Reid's body shivered, confirming Morgan's suspicions.

"You have a fever kid." Morgan ran his fingers through the boy's hair hoping that it would help cool him off. "This isn't a migraine, is it?"

Reid shook his head and felt like he wanted to cry, Morgan now knew that Reid had lied to him – but not only him – Reid had lied to the team. "No."

"You know I'm going to have to tell Hotch."

"No, Morgan…please don't tell him." His voice was stained with fear and panic, "He's going to know I lied to him and after what happened in Alaska, he would baby me. And he would be so mad…"

"You shouldn't have lied but he loves you kid. He just wants to make sure you're alright." Morgan continued to stroke Reid's head and back. When Morgan noticed Reid had begun shaking more violently he decided they should probably try and make it back to the hotel.

"Come on kid." Morgan said as he softly lifted Reid to his feet, Reid started scuffing his feet in the direction of his car but Morgan's hand reached out and grabbed the back of his sweater, "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to drive the car back."

"Uh, no. Pretty Boy you are in no condition to operate a vehicle. I'm going to drive you to the hotel and then tomorrow someone is going to come and get this car." Reid nodded knowing that Morgan was right; he could barely stand let alone drive a car.

"Mmkay." With Morgan by his side for support Reid shuffled into the passenger's side and waited for Morgan to go back around and get in the driver's seat. When he got into the car he handed Reid the bottle of water that was sitting in the cup holder.

"This is for you kid. Drink it."

"Mmkay." Reid said and Morgan wondered if that was the only thing he could say. Spencer took a few cautious sips of the cold liquid before twisting the cap back on. The coldness of the water was making him feel even worse as he felt it slither its way down his throat and into the pit of his stomach.

"How long have you been feeling bad?" Morgan asked as he started the engine.

"Morgan, I really don't want the attention. It's fine, I'm fine. I promise."

"Why is it hard for me to believe you? Oh, maybe it's because the last time you said that I found you throwing up in a McDonald's parking lot or the time before that you ended up in the hospital or the time before…"

"I get it." Reid said as he retreated into himself from Morgan's harsh tone.

"Look, Reid. I'm sorry man, but you haven't been too truthful when it comes to your health."

"Yeah, I know." Reid looked out the window at the scenery that passed by him. Forests of trees rushed by and he began to think of his childhood. He thought about the first time he had seen a forest and how weird it was for him. In Vegas there was desert landscaping in every front yard, grass and trees were rare. So to see so many trees in such a small area was shocking to him.

"So tell me, when did this all start?" Morgan looked over at Reid.

"When I fell asleep at work. I was just really tired but then when I woke up I knew that I was feeling awful." He coughed and moaned.

"You should have told someone."

"I know!" Reid yelled in frustration. He knew that he should have told them. He was mad at himself, not at Morgan for telling him what he already knew. Silence filled the air as Reid wallowed in his embarrassment.

"Any idea what you have doctor?" Morgan finally broke the tension in the air.

"I'm not a medical doctor Morgan…" his voice trailed off, but Morgan didn't speak yet. If Reid did have any idea what might be ailing him he would tell Morgan. When they first met Derek thought Spencer told facts to brag but he soon realized it was to inform others, bring them to the same level as him, just like Morgan had thought Reid finally spoke, "…there's a good chance it's the flu. It's been going around my apartment. I tried to avoid it…obviously, I guess no one would not try and avoid it…but my attempts to stay flu free apparently were not successful." He grumbled.

"You can't really avoid these things."

"It came at the worse time."

"They tend to do that." Morgan said half laughing.

"What's so funny?" Reid asked defensively.

"Nothing, you're just so young sometimes. I always forget." Reid huffed, proving Morgan's point but neither said anything. The silence was bothering Morgan so he decided to look over and see if Spencer was asleep. He watched as the boy's face visibly paled and turned a slight tinge of green. He knew what would be coming next so he drove into the nearest parking lot. Once they parked Reid got out of the car and ran into the bathroom and _Barnes and Noble_. Morgan turned off the car and then, at a much slower pace, followed him. As he entered the restroom he could hear the painful sound of retching and he winced. Morgan walked into the stall to see Reid vomiting up the small amount of water he had managed to swallow in the car.

"It's okay." Morgan said soothingly as he rubbed Reid's back in small circles, "You're alright."

Reid sat back and looked up at Morgan with tears in his eyes. He had been sick before but never this sick. All he wanted to do was curl up and die.

"Did you know that the flu…never mind."

"What?" asked Morgan curious as to what Reid was about to say.

"No, forget it. I was going to tell you a statistic but I'm way too tired." Reid yawned and continued to sit on the cold tile for several minutes.

"You ready?" Morgan asked when he finally heard Reid's breathing stabilize. Spencer nodded and used both the wall and Morgan's right arm to stand up. Slowly, and with many strange looks, the two boys walked back to the car.

"I just want to be in a warm bed, asleep. Maybe this thing will be gone in the morning." Reid said hopefully and Moran smiled encouraging the fantasy although both of them knew it wasn't going to be true.

Morgan turned the key but the car just made a funny noise, "Shit." He said trying to start it again but the car only came back with the same sad sound.

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**A/N: Hope you like it! It's my birthday so this story is my present to you all! :) I'm thinking of starting a story of one shots, what do you all think?**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Speedy update because I love you all! Hope it's mutual. : )**

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"Wait here." Morgan told Reid as he got out of the car. Spencer watched as the muscular man lifted up the hood of the car and started messing around with some of the pieces. They would always joke around that he knew everything but Spencer honestly knew nothing when it came to automobile maintenance. Derek slammed the hood shut and climbed back into the driver's seat, "It should work now."

Just as predicted Morgan tried turning the key in the ignition and the car roared to life, "You're amazing." Reid mumbled in marvel. He had never seen someone start a car that quickly.

"I do what I can Pretty Boy, I do what I can." Morgan laughed and Reid used up most of his energy to half smile. Morgan saw the grimace hidden on the boy's face and felt his heart sink, he hated to see Reid looking so ill, "Now let's get you to that warm, toasty bed, okay?"

Reid smiled and nodded thinking about how comfortable it would feel to lay down on a pillow top mattress with a giant comforter wrapped around him. He would get to sleep and then in the morning he would at least feel a little better.

Morgan's phone started ringing as they pulled out of the parking lot. He clicked a button to put the phone on speaker. _Driving with a handheld phone is illegal in Washington along with eight other states. _Reid thought answering his own question as to why Morgan would put the phone on speaker.

"Hey Baby Girl. What can I do for you?" He smiled as he made a right turn onto the freeway; it would take them about five minutes to get there according to the GPS that was in the car.

"Well there's a lot you can do for me but I don't think it's legal in most places." Morgan laughed and Reid smirked. The humor made him feel slightly better, "I'm just calling to say hi and I wanted to know what you thought of Washington, AKA the Vampire State."

"It's actually called 'The Evergreen State,' I don't know who told you it was the 'Vampire State' but they were lying to you." Explained Reid unable to resist saying something, he wasn't sure where she got 'The Vampire State' from but he knew that she wasn't right.

"Hey Reid, I didn't know you were there. Also it was a joke smart ass." Reid turned to Morgan who was smirking and trying to contain his laughter; his pearly white teeth visible even in the growing darkness.

"I'm not a smart ass, am I?" he whispered more mouthing the words than anything so Garcia couldn't here. Morgan laughed and just shook his head.

"Sometimes you can be, but we love you for it." Morgan said quietly and ruffled Reid's hair before returning his hand to the steering wheel.

"So have you seen any sparkling Cullens yet?" Garcia chuckled and Morgan smiled bigger.

"That's the name of the vampire family from _Twilight_, I remember JJ told me that last year. What does sparkling have to do with vampires?" Reid asked confused. He knew he was out of it but he was awake enough to know that made no sense.

"According to _Twilight _vampires sparkle in the sunlight." Garcia said over the phone.

"No, they burn. That's completely wrong." Reid was baffled at how something so inaccurate could ever be published.

"They also don't drink human blood and can't turn into bats." Morgan added.

"That's…no...that's just wrong." Reid couldn't fathom what they were saying. His head was pounding both from his illness and also from the sheer fact that someone could have written a book without researching its main topic.

"And they don't use coffins to sleep, in fact they never sleep and their abstinent until marriage." Morgan said again and watched as Reid's jaw dropped.

"That's can't be right. Everything about that is wrong. Vampires are the most sexual, romantic beasts in the fantasy world." Reid thought about everything for a moment and then added, "How do you even know this Morgan?"

"Garcia made me read it." Morgan answered his smile turning into a serious face.

"Mmm…correction: Morgan made Garcia read it." Garcia said laughing. Reid started laughing too but it quickly turned into harsh coughing and Morgan remembered just how sick Reid was. He had enjoyed the break from reality but it was time to focus his attention back onto his ailing friend; they were close to the hotel anyways and Morgan would need to have no distractions as he navigated the unfamiliar streets.

"I have to go Baby Girl. I'll call you later."

"Alright Chocolate Lovin', you rock – and your abs are like rock! Talk to you later Stud." Morgan smiled and looked over to see what Reid thought of her joke but the boy was fast asleep. Morgan reached a hand down to hang up the phone and then exited the freeway.

"Pretty Boy," he said nudging Reid trying to wake him up, "We're almost there. Try to stay up a little longer and then it will make going to sleep in a bed that much nicer."

"I want to sleep now." Reid groaned and closed his eyes again ignoring what Morgan had said.

"I know, but just try to stay awake. Can you do that for me?" Reid nodded but Morgan could tell he was fading fast. They turned onto a residential street and were met with the familiar sight of flashing red and blue lights.

"Whoa, what's this?" Morgan asked as they approached the strange roadblock. Reid became more alert as the blinking lights woke him up from his sleepy haze. Derek rolled down his window and waved an officer over to them.

"We're federal agents, can you tell me what's going on?" he asked pulling out his badge and showing it to the police woman who had come over to their car. Usually he didn't have to pull out the badge in scenarios like this but Reid was looking so scrappy and pale no one would ever believe they worked for the FBI.

"You here on that serial murderer?" she asked and both Reid and Morgan nodded.

"We found another victim."

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**A/N: This is something I posted in my other story with my last update but I forgot to tell you all: So today is my birthday and it got me thinking, we all have them but no one on fanfic really knows because unlike facebook and other social networking sites you don't get notifications when its your friends birthday. So I would like to do two things. One: Happy Birthday to Everyone! (because eventually it will be your day), Two: I'm starting a series of one-shots, like one story with multiple one-shots and my "gift" to all of you is if you have an idea or request of what you want one of the chapters to be just let me know and I will write it for you. : ) Your birthday doesn't have to be today, tomorrow, this month or even in the next eight months. Anyone can take advantage of this. : )!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Update! Yay!**

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"This doesn't make any sense." Said Reid as he got out of the car and began walking towards the house with Morgan. The older man was reluctant to have Spencer get out of the car but the boy insisted that he was feeling better; however, as Reid began to cough he wondered if he had made the wrong decision.

"What doesn't?" asked Morgan curiously. He lifted up the 'do not cross' tape for Reid before ducking underneath it himself. A strung gust of wind caused Reid to shiver and zip his jacket up further.

"JJ said the next one would be in three days because they were happening in ten day intervals."

"So you don't think this is our person?" Reid shook his head and shoved his hands deep into his pockets. The wind was gone but Reid felt himself still shivering, he was doing everything in his power for Morgan to not notice. A nasty bout of coughing caused Morgan to stop walking and look over.

"I'm fine." Morgan gave him a disbelieving look but Reid ignored it and answered his previous question, "UnSubs usually don't break patterns. I can't imagine this person would alter theirs after sticking to the same routine for three months."

"What do you think we should do?" asked Morgan as they approached the body. Spencer hated this part, especially with his weakened stomach. As he looked down at the dissembled figure he began to picture the act being committed, his stomach flipped causing him to place his hand on top of it.

"Call Hotch and ask him. I have to…go." He quickly turned on his heels and ran out the door. He stumbled across the lawn until he came to the edge of the forest where he doubled over and began to vomit stomach acid. He could feel the bile course through his throat and into his mouth. The taste alone caused him to throw up again.

When he thought he was finished he moved into a sitting position and drew his legs up to his body. He tucked them close to his chest and wrapped his arms tightly around them.

"Why does it always have to be me?" he grumbled out loud. He felt ill, that was the word that summed it up best. His body ached, his head throbbed and his stomach churned. He brought the heel of his hand up to his eyes and pushed down trying to massage out the pressure that was building up.

"You should go see a doctor." Said a nearby cop who seemed to be picking up something off the ground and bagging it for evidence. Reid removed his hands from his eyes and looked over.

"I'm fine." He mumbled threw squinted eyes.

"I heard you say that exact same thing to that strong lookin' guy a few seconds before you ran out here and started throwing up. Either this is one of your first crime scenes, which I doubt, or you're battling the flu or something."

"I probably just ate something bad. That's all." Reid wanted the guy to go away; he was making his head pound worse than before. The guy was now standing over him and for the first time he was able to see what the guy had picked up from the ground "Can I see that?"

"Sure." Reid took the evidence bag and held it up into the light. He turned the bag around and around. After awhile the guy got bored watching Reid and decided to see what else he could do. When he left Reid finally allowed himself to let out the sneeze he had been holding in.

"Hey Pretty Boy, are you okay?" Morgan called as he stepped out from the house. Reid took some dirt and piled it over where he had gotten sick.

"Yeah, just looking at this evidence." Said Reid holding up the see through bag. There was a white handkerchief covered in blood.

"What are you doing on the floor?" he was now at Spencer's side.

"I thought I saw something but it was just a gum wrapper and since I was already sitting I thought I would just look at the evidence down here." He knew it was a dumb lie and Derek could see right through it.

"Stop lying kid, just talk to me." Morgan wanted to help him but he was quickly running out of ideas. There was only so much he could say or do.

"I'm fine." He said and jumped to his feet to prove his point. He swayed at first but easily gained his balance.

"You know, I'm getting really tired of you saying that." Morgan grumbled and Reid shrugged unsure of what he should say. Another wave of nausea hit Spencer and he didn't know what to do, it wasn't like he could run away from Morgan again without being conspicuous, "Did you figure anything out?"

"Yeah. Just that this isn't our UnSub. I would say an affair gone badly, the guy had a monogrammed handkerchief, no ring but a tan line and there were eight bullets fired, this was an act of anger." Said Reid trying to swallow down the nausea. Bed, he wanted to be in bed. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah Pretty Boy, this is a local police case. We can head to the hotel." Reid smiled relieved by the information and began to walk to the car. Every step he took made him feel heavier and heavier. He stumbled and reached out to Morgan who anticipated the tumble and was there to catch the young boy.

"Thanks." Reid said gripping onto Derek's shirt trying to regain control of his body. He moaned out as his stomach churned again. "I'm going to be sick."

As the words passed his lips he began to heave and Derek gently rubbed the boy's back as he shielded him from curios glances of those passing by. He knew the kid wouldn't want anyone to see so he blocked him with his body.

"I think I'm ready." Reid said looking pathetic and weak. He leaned his head onto Derek's shoulder, the heat soaked through the cloth and Morgan could feel the fever emanating from the boy's skin. He sniffled and Morgan could feel his body go slightly limp in his arms. He wondered if the boy would even make it to the car before passing out from exhaustion. Deciding he didn't want to risk it he placed one hand on Spencer's back and his other arm looped around the back side of Spencer's knees. In one solid movement he gallantly picked the boy up and carried him to the car. Just as he had expected Reid was already fast asleep by the time Morgan buckled him into the car seat.

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**A/N: What did you all think? : )**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Updates are fun! : ) I'm still taking requests for one-shots. Question: does anyone read author notes anyways? Thanks for all the reviews for last chapter. On to what you came here for…**

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Reid brought a shaking hand up to shield his eyes from the light. For some reason the sun had decided it was going to shine right into his hotel room. It felt like he had finally just fallen asleep and now he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to go back to bed. Reid was one of those people who, no matter how early, could never go back to sleep once woken up. It didn't take Spencer more than thirty seconds of consciousness to realize he still felt bad, in fact, he felt worse than the day before. His throat burned and there was no doubt that he needed to get to a bathroom and fast. He moaned as he rolled over in his bed. An alarm in the room next to his began going off and the thin walls made in painfully audible. Without even thinking he automatically yanked a pillow up and pulled it over his head. The morning had come too quickly and he wasn't quite ready for it yet. Still, he knew that if he wanted to keep suspicion low he needed to act like he was feeling completely healed today.

"Pretty Boy, you up?" A voice called from the other side of the door. Reid begrudgingly removed the pillow that was blocking out the noise and turned to face the entrance. Images of the night before flashed into Reid's mind. The parking lot, the crime scene. He didn't remember much else.

"Uhm, yeah." Reid called back; he wasn't expecting an intrusion so early. What time was it anyways?

"Just wanted to see how you're doing this morning." He didn't want Morgan to worry, the last time Reid had gotten sick on a case it ended with him dehydrated and in the hospital. If anyone found out he was still feeling bad they would want him to go see a doctor and Spencer knew this was nothing serious.

"Doing great." He lied and jumped out of bed. Reid swayed on his feet as the room spun around him; he used the wall to steady himself until everything stopped moving. Once it did he walked slowly over to the front pathway and leaned up against a neighboring wall.

"Can you open the door?" Morgan called.

"I actually just got out of the shower." He sure was getting good at the whole lying thing. They came more naturally to him than the truth sometimes.

"Alright, well we're meeting down in the lobby in an hour. They have a free breakfast on the fourth floor; make sure you get something to eat."

"Okay, thanks Morgan." He pressed his ear to the door and waited to hear the fateful footsteps of Derek walking away. Once he was sure the man was gone Reid stumbled into the bathroom where he became acquainted with the hotel's toilet. His stomach leaped and he felt like a herd of hippos where stampeding over his head. To make matters worse Reid was unable to breathe out of his nose he was so congested.

When Spencer felt slightly better he decided that he should probably get dressed and ready for the long day ahead of him. _Please just let this be a map day_. He thought to himself. _I just want to sit, by myself, at the police station_. With one trembling hand grasping the corner of the sink he used all of his strength to pull the rest of him up.

"I don't look too bad." Spencer said when he saw his reflection grimacing back at him in the mirror. He even was good at lying to himself. Slowly he unzipped his pants and let them fall to the floor, next he carefully reached up and pulled off the sweater he had been wearing the previous day – Morgan hadn't dressed him in his pajamas. Finally Reid removed his purple boxers, a sock with pink hearts from one foot and a green argyle one from the other.

Reid turned the faucet on cold and jumped into the freezing shower water. Before he had gotten in he was shaking but after being sick not too long ago he knew that being cold was always a sign of having a fever. If he didn't want people to know he was sick he needed to try and reduce it by making his skin feel cooler. It was a long shot but he was desperate. Reid let the ice water cover his skin as he lathered his body up with soap.

Nearly five minutes later Reid turned the handle towards _off_ and reached for a towel. With his body still somewhat damp Spencer climbed out of the shower and began shuffling around trying to get an outfit put together.

Once dressed he sat down on the edge of his bed and contemplated what to do. There were only twenty minutes to spare before he had to be down in the lobby. He wasn't hungry at all, so that ruled out getting breakfast. It was too late to try and take a nap. The TV was only running the news stations. There was nothing he wanted or could do in the time frame he had. _I could read a book_; he thought but soon realized his mind was too preoccupied with trying to keep his stomach from revolting that it wouldn't be able to read at its normal pace. Finally after seven minutes of thinking, and only thirteen minutes until he had to be downstairs, Spencer decided that he would just go wait in the lobby.

As he stood up he felt the ground rushing towards him and a sudden pain pierced through his arm causing him to yelp. Even when he wasn't moving the area around him was spinning faster every second. With tears in his eyes Reid crawled to the nightstand and felt around for his phone. He wasn't able to see the numbers but fortunately he remembered an old trick he had learned. Each key made a different sound. After a little experimenting and a lot of luck he was able to figure out what each tone was for all the individual numbers. Spencer hurriedly dialed the first phone number that came to mind.

"Penelope Garcia, Goddess of Technology, daughter of Zeus and Hera – what can I do for you mortal?"

"Garcia, call Morgan, I need help." Reid didn't even have time to hang up the phone before he passed out.

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**A/N: Hurrah. Hope you all enjoyed that.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: So I'm going off to school tomorrow and I'm going to be honest, it might be four days until my next update. I'm going to do my very best to ensure that's not the case but I can't guarantee anything. Tonight I'm going to write the next two chapters so one night I will only have to update and not write the story too.**

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"Reid?" Garcia hopefully waited for an answer, "Reid? Oh no. No. No No."

Garcia spun around in her chair and raced out of the office. As she ran down the hall she began to dial Derek's number. She didn't know where she was running to but she just couldn't imagine sitting still while Reid was in trouble.

"Pick up."

_Ring_.

"Pick up."

_Ring_.

"Oh, come on. Pick up."

_Ring_.

"Please, please, please. Pick up." _Ri_—

"Hey Baby Girl, what's up?" Morgan casually answered his phone.

"Thank goodness. I was afraid you wouldn't answer." He could hear the panic in her voice and instantly became concerned. He could count, on one hand, the number of times he had heard this amount of fear in her voice. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

"Garcia, what's going on?" He asked afraid of the answer.

"It's Reid. He's not okay. I think he's sick, real sick." Before Garcia even had time to finish her sentence Derek had hung up the phone and started at a dead sprint for the elevator.

"Come on." He said pressing the fifth floor button repeatedly. The doors closed and the old elevator began its slow ascent upwards. "Can't this go faster?"

He pressed the button over and over again. It wasn't doing anything but the motion got his mind off of the fact that Reid wasn't well. He slammed his muscular hand into the wall as he tried to fight back a wave of emotion. It was always Reid. He was the one who got hurt, beaten, kidnapped and sick. Derek would gladly trade place for the sake of saving the boy. After a seemingly eternity later the doors finally pushed themselves open.

"Reid?" he shouted as he banged on the door. There was no answer. "Shit. Reid?"

He looked at the door, it was only wooden. He could easily break it down. If that's what it took to help Reid, he would do it. Derek backed up against the wall across the hall, he needed room for his leg to kick.

"Morgan?" A voice called from down the hall, "What's going on, I was about to head down and I heard you calling for Reid. Is everything okay?"

"Hotch, do you have a key?" The man nodded pulling out a plastic card. "What's going on?"

"Garcia called me and told me Reid wasn't okay. I didn't ask questions, I just ran up here."

Aaron nodded as he inserted the card into the door and quickly removed it. A green light flashed and the two older men entered the room. Lying face down on the floor was Spencer Reid. Aaron paled and felt like he could be sick. The boy looked dead.

"Reid!" Morgan ran to his side and flipped him over. He grabbed Reid's right wrist and was ecstatic when he felt the blood rushing underneath his touch. That wasn't the only thing he could feel, Spencer's skin was scorching, "There's a pulse, he's alive. Hotch, he's burning up."

"Come on Kid, wake up." He gently tapped the sides of Reid's face and watched as his eyes slowly fluttered open. Aaron and Derek felt themselves relax instantly as Spencer began to move into a sitting position.

"Take it easy Reid." Hotch said as he bent down and placed a hand on the young boy's shoulder.

"It hurts." He mumbled throwing his head back.

"What hurts?" Morgan asked. The boy was clearly out of it, he was fading in and out of consciousness, "Reid, what hurts?"

"Morgan, look." Derek followed Hotch's gaze and saw what he was talking about. The area around Reid's left wrist was swollen. It also appeared that his hand was crooked. Morgan softly touched it and noticed that it was tender to the touch.

"Stop!" Reid shouted when Derek applied pressure. He swatted at his hand.

"Did you break your wrist?" Aaron asked.

"I don't know." Reid mumbled with his eyes close, "It would make sense. I fell down and put my hand out. It's basic knowledge that you should never try to catch yourself when you fall but I wasn't thinking at the time."

"We're going to need to take you to a hospital, okay?" Aaron questioned although it wasn't really datable.

"Rhetorical questions always bother me. They just contradict the definition of question. Also people don't realize what rhetorical actually means. When someone says that they just asked a rhetorical question they are literally saying that they just asked you a pompous question." Morgan smiled that Reid was conscious enough to talk about facts and random musings. Spencer grimaced as he tried to push himself up off the ground. "It really hurts." He admitted.

"I know Pretty Boy, but everything will work out." Morgan said soothingly and ran a hand through the boy's hair. "Besides the injury how are you feeling? There was a reason you passed out in the first place."

Reid contemplated how he should answer. They were going to the hospital now, the jig was up. He couldn't hide anything much longer.

"I feel bad. Awful. My head hurts, my throat burns and I'm feeling nauseas." If anyone else had said that Derek would have scooted away but with Reid he stayed perfectly still. After his dad had died he took over as man of the house. He took care of his mother and sisters whenever they got sick, he had plenty of practice.

"Alright, well the doctors can diagnose you when we get to the hospital. Come on." Aaron and Morgan both helped the boy stand. He was week on his feet and relied heavily on the two men for walking support.

"Wait," Reid said. Derek turned and watched Spencer's face turn a faint shade of green. Without saying anything else they rushed the boy into the bathroom. Spencer fell to his knees and began to gag. Aaron began to rub his back; it was what he did with Jack whenever he got sick. Reid had silent tears streaming from his eyes. He was in pain and he was embarrassed. Once finished Reid pushed himself back and sat on the floor for a few seconds to try and calm down. He put his hands in his head and closed his eyes.

"Have you been eating red Jell-O?" Morgan questioned.

"No, I can't stomach anything, why?" Reid looked up and was greeted by two concerned faces. He looked into the toilet bowl and saw what they were staring at. Blood.

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**A/N: Review please. : ) I'll do my best to update.**


	9. Chapter 9

** A/N: Finally. So sorry. I hope some of you are still interested in this. Life has been hectic. Very hectic but I have everything figure out and I'm all settled. I appreciate your patience and I hope the long absence hasn't turned away too many people.**

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Sometimes life is easy. Other times it can be hard. Then there are moments where it is completely disastrous.

"We really need to get you to the hospital. How's the hand?" Hotch said breaking the silence in the room; no one had dared to speak before that. They had all just shared momentary glances; looking from one person to the next.

"Bad." Reid answered in a pitiful voice. The way his thin frame slumped against the basin made Morgan think of a small child.

"How's the stomach?" Hotch inquired as he bent down next to the youngest agent.

"Worse." He moaned as he brought one of his long arms to lay gently across his stomach. He couldn't remember a time when he had felt this awful. There was a knock on the door and all three heads snapped to look at it.

"Hey Reid, it's JJ, I was just wondering if you had gotten breakfast yet. I'm about to go down myself and I thought you might want company." Reid began to panic. He didn't want JJ to see him this desperate and pathetic looking.

Morgan opened his mouth to say something but Reid grumbled and mouthed 'no.' Maybe she would leave after a little bit if he didn't answer. For all she knew he was already at breakfast or in the lobby waiting for the team. She knocked one more time.

"This is ridiculous man." Morgan grumbled, "We are taking you the second she leaves."

"Spence?" She called from the other side of the door. Reid put his hand in the air and waited for Morgan to help him up. Unfortunately on the way up his sock slipped on the tile causing him to stumble. He quickly grasped for the counter, forgetting he was injured. The pain shot up his arm and he couldn't contain the _yelp_ that escaped his mouth. To top everything off one of the hotel's glass cups tumbled to the ground in a crashing finale.

"Reid!" JJ's voice was panicked and she banged loudly on the door.

"Hold on." He said trying to hold back tears and cradling his hurt appendage. Morgan had one arm on his elbow and was gently guiding him towards the door.

"Hey JJ." Reid faked a smile as he opened the large door.

"Oh, Spence." She sighed sympathetically as she took in his entire appearance, "Has anyone offered to take you to the doctors yet?"

"I actually feel fine but thanks for the concern. Have you seen Emily, she was looking for you earlier? Alright, well I'll see you later JJ." He began to close the door but she inserted her foot before it completely shut.

"Like hell. You need help Spence." She looked from Morgan to Hotch, who had just joined them from the other room, and waited for them to say something. When they didn't she continued talking, "Tell me what's wrong." It wasn't a question, it was a demand.

"I'm nauseous, dizzy and my head is killing me." He leaned against the wall for support. "I also just threw up blood."

"Are you serious?" her voice was stern and concerned, "Why didn't you take him to the hospital yet?"

"We were about to leave when you got here." Morgan sounded slightly defensive.

"Well someone needs to take him now. I can if you want me to, Henry was sick just the other day and…oh…" her voice trailed off quickly.

"What is it?" Hotch asked in his typical stern voice.

"Henry was sick." She repeated herself.

"Right, and…what does that have to do with this?"

"I must be a carrier and passed it onto Reid." She looked over at the boy who had now crawled into bed. He groaned and pulled the covers over his head.

"Of course. The rotavirus."

"Alright. Are you two speaking English or do I need to call Garcia to translate?"

"It's a disease that every child comes into contact with. Almost everyone has built up some kind of immunity to it by the age of five. I didn't socialize much as an infant and didn't really get it until I was older. I guess I never built up that defense. When was Henry sick?"

"Two days ago."

"That's how long it takes for someone to get infected." Reid said confirming their diagnoses. It was all making sense.

"I'm so sorry Spence."

"It's fine JJ." She didn't look convinced, "Really. This isn't your fault I mean a carrier's hand has ten trillion infectious particles and only ten of those had to come in contact with my body in order for me to get sick." For the first time in a long time Reid felt comfortable being around people while he was sick. There was something comforting about knowing there was someone who would always be there for you no matter how bad you felt.

"Is there an upside to this at all?" Asked Morgan hopefully.

"Let's see…nausea, dizziness, other intestinal problems, fever, runny nose…and all for six to eight days…I would say no." The four team members shared a knowing glance: it was going to be a long week.

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**A/N: Thanks for reading everyone. Please review. I promise I'll update sooner now that everything is all settled down. :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**PLEASE READ: I know some people skip A/Ns but please read this one. Thank you to all of those who are still interested in this story. I truly am sorry that it has taken me two years to update. As I said in the updates for a couple of my other stories; the last two years have been crazy. I never stopped reading your reviews and, maybe this sounds stupid, but they helped me through a lot. This chapter will probably be a little short compared to ones in the past but they will get longer. So...without further ado...here we go...**

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"Spence before you go back to sleep someone needs to take you to the hospital. Even if it is just a sprain you need to get a splint. Also, you need to tell them about the blood – it might not be a big deal but Henry never had that symptom so maybe we're wrong." JJ was sitting on the edge of the boy's bed. His miserable appearance filled her with empathy and she lovingly placed one hand on his leg.

She hated seeing him in this condition. It was a weird phenomenon but in many ways Reid had become the team's surrogate child. It wasn't that they looked down on him or treated him like a baby; it was just that they all knew he yearned for a parental connection. His father had left him and his mother was just a shadow of her disease.

"JJ, I'm fine."

"How can you even say that, Reid?" Morgan asked in disbelief.

"I just..."

"You need help, Kid" Morgan said in a strong yet loving manner "There isn't anything wrong with that."

"I don't like doctors..." Reid mumbled as his eyes began drooping shut. He was cradling his injured wrist in his good hand. It was clear to see that the pain was getting unbearable.

"No one does, Spence, but you need one now." JJ winced as the boy let out a wet, raspy cough.

"I'm so tired." His voice sounded pained and Morgan watched as his feverish eyes began to close. Morgan cringed for a moment. A few years back he had caught Reid shooting dilaudid, he had the same blank expression on his face back then – as if he was in a completely different world; distant from everything going on around him.

At first when he found Reid in the bathroom, with an empty vial at his side and needle still in his arm, he didn't know what to do. Stunned at catching him and stunned at being caught, the two men sat in silence for thirty minutes before Morgan finally found the words to say. He promised that if Reid started going to Narcotics Anonymous he wouldn't tell anyone – it would be their secret so long as he seek help. The two men had always stayed true to their word but no matter how hard he tried, Derek could never get the image of Reid dazed and messed up out of his head.

"Reid." Derek nudged him causing the young agent to jolt awake, "You can't fall asleep on me, man."

"Aaron," JJ whispered getting the attention of the oldest agent, "we need to get him to a doctor immediately."

He nodded, "Where's the nearest hospital?"

"The nearest hospital is on Gilmore Street, it's 15 minutes away...10 if Morgan's driving." Reid mumbled as his head rolled lazily against the headboard. JJ gave a half smile of relief; at least his memory was still there.

"Morgan, bring the car around to the front. JJ and I will get Reid downstairs then take him to the nearest hospital." Hotch ordered and Derek nodded as he grabbed the keys and ran out of the hotel room.

"Reid, I need you to stay awake, okay?" JJ soothed as she gently shook the boy, "If you fall asleep now, you won't want to get back up. You're dehydrated, your hand is swollen and you've recently vomited blood...I just need you to stay awake for me, okay?"

"I'm so sorry." Reid said looking deep into JJ's eyes, "Please forgive me. Please forgive me. I'm so sorry."

"Reid, you have nothing to apologies for." She placed a hand on his arm and lovingly rubbed it in a soothing pattern, "Being sick is nothing to be ashamed of or feel bad about."

"I didn't know what else to do." Reid began to cry softly. Hotch and JJ exchanged a confused glance, neither one fully understanding what was going on.

"What do you mean?" JJ asked turning back towards the boy, "What did you do?"

"I'm so sorry."

"Reid, what's going on?" Hotch shook the boy's arm trying to get his attention but the boy wouldn't take his eyes off JJ.

Aaron and JJ shared another glance; this time it wasn't confusion but concern that was present on their faces. Her hand flung up to his forehead "Hotch, his fever is spiking."

"Mama, I can't take care of you anymore. I'm so sorry." Reid eyes pleaded for forgiveness, "I just want what's best for you, Mama. I just want..."

"Reid," the boys eyes had close and she nudged him gently – there was no response, "Reid...Reid..." she shook him but his body remained motionless, "...Spencer," JJ's voice began to shake with panic and fear, "Spence...please..."

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**A/N: Thank you again for all of those who have stuck with this story from its inauguration – and thank you for joining us, if you have just started reading. If you like this, please check out my other Criminal Minds fics. I promise – and this time I'm not going to disappear for two years – to update this one soon. Please let me know what you think. : )**


	11. Chapter 11

**Glad to see that some of you have stuck with the story and I'm ecstatic to see some new people reviewing also!**

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"Hotch..." JJ tearfully looked up at the older man, her face ridden with concern; Aaron was already in motion. He placed Reid's arms – careful not to irritate his swollen wrist – around his own neck and, in one quick stride, lifted the boy out of bed. She often liked to think of herself as tough, but seeing Reid so vulnerable caused her eyes to fog with steaming tears.

It wasn't just that he was sick; it was everything that had just happened. JJ knew more about Diana Reid than anyone else on the entire team. Five years ago they had been called out to California to work on a case involving several missing children. It was a grueling case and involved speaking to nearly a dozen parents about their missing kids – a conversation that was almost guaranteed to end in yelling or tears.

It took nearly two weeks but they finally were able to solve the case. The team ended up finding out that Sherrie Gown, a mother who had accidently killed her own son in an automobile wreck, was kidnapping other families' children to replace the one she had lost. The woman was completely detached from reality and, as a result, often forgot that she had taken the children in the first place. They were neglected and starved; all of the children survived but only barely. By the time they went home the entire team was emotionally drained, it was a wonder that they even made it on the plane before passing out. Halfway back to Quanitco, JJ had woken up and found that Spencer was still wide awake.

"Can't sleep?" she had asked as she rubbed the sleep from her own eyes, "Children cases always bother me too."

"It's not that," he had said with his brow furrowed, "While I was doing an interview with one of the missing children's mothers, she just...she just said something...it stuck with me. I tried to forget it but that's the problem with eidetic memories, it's nearly impossible to forget anything. Even the things you wish you could. I don't know, it's stupid."

"You're torn up over words a grieving mother said?" JJ asked slightly confused.

"It didn't bother me at first. But then...when we got the Unsub...seeing her completely lost look when we raided her house. The shocked expression on her face as we extracted six children from her basement...as if she was seeing them all for the first time...completely oblivious to how they got there. That blank, unknowing, confused look...it just reminded me of an expression I had seen before on someone else."

It would be only a little while longer until JJ knew exactly who he was referring to, "Spence, can I ask you what that mother said...the one from the interview?"

"Well we were talking about her son, Michael, and she was going on and on about how he was such a great kid. Always on the honors role, star of three sports, helped out around the house, but a year ago he had gotten into a lot of trouble with stealing. Started hanging out with the wrong type of people. She said he was even arrested after he tried to rob a gas station.

Then all of a sudden she looked at me and just said, 'when you're a parent, you should always love your children. Always. Even when they mess up. They might drive you crazy, they might get on your nerves but they always need you to love them – to be proud of them. You find my baby, Dr. Reid, I know you can.' It just got me thinking about my own mom...if she was proud of me..."

"I'm sure your mother is very proud of you." JJ had said while smiling, at that point she was completely oblivious to the young agent's past.

"That's the thing," Reid closed his eyes. He could still perfectly see the blank, unknowing, confused look on his mother's face when the two orderlies came to take her away, "I don't think she is."

A few months after that JJ approached Reid about his mother again and the young agent broke down in tears. They spent an entire night, in a worn down hotel room talking about Diana. The good and the bad.

"Grab the door," Hotch's voice suddenly commanded JJ brining her back into reality. She was there in two seconds holding the door open. As Aaron was walking through the threshold he looked down at the blonde agent, "Everything will be okay."

She nodded quickly and rubbed her right hand across her face trying to hide her tears, "I know. I'm just scared for him."

"So am I," Aaron added quickly before continuing on to the elevator. Later that night JJ realized it was one of the only times that she had actually heard fear in the older agent's voice.

When they got into the elevator JJ noticed that Reid was mumbling words that she couldn't quite understand. But from the look on Aaron's face, she wasn't entirely sure that she wanted to. She watched as his eyes began to flicker from burning anger to forgotten sadness. They made eye contact for a brief second and she could have sworn the man's eyes were glossy with tears. She wondered what Reid could be saying that could have stirred up so much emotion for Aaron.

Reid was shaking with chills; the ride down seemed to take an eternity for the agents inside. When they finally exited the elevator and entered the hotel lobby they saw Morgan was just pulling up in a black SUV. No matter where they went, it was always a black SUV.

"JJ, go with Morgan to the hospital. I'll let the team know what's going on," The two other agents nodded, "Keep me updated if anything happens."

JJ got into the back seat and Aaron placed Reid right next to her. Within seconds he was lying down with his head resting in her lap, similar to the way Henry would curl up close to her when he wasn't feeling well – she stroked his hair, feeling the warmth that radiated from his body.

"Everything is going to be okay," she promised, but even she couldn't tell if she was lying or not.

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**Thanks again, everyone! You reviews rock (please keep them coming)! **


	12. Chapter 12

**Thanks for your reviews and for reading! :) I played with this chapter a lot, so please let me know what you think.**

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"JJ?" Reid mumbled groggily as he slow woke up. He was in a bed but clueless as to how he got there or where "there" was exactly. His head was spinning and he could tell that if he opened his eyes he would be sick to his stomach. So he just lay still in the bed hoping that there was someone there to answer him.

He was in a lose/lose situation. If he opened his eyes he knew he would feel worse than he already did. At the same time, not knowing where he was or who he was with terrified him. He was about to give in and open his eyes when a strong voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Well good morning, Pretty Boy," Only one person called him that, he was safe with that voice around.

"Hi, Morgan" Reid smiled. He could hear the other man setting a magazine down, getting up out of a chair and shuffling around the room.

"How are you feeling?" The older agent asked as he sat down on the edge of Reid's bed.

"Like I got hit by a truck." His dizziness was subsiding and Reid slowly opened his eyes. The bright light in the room hurt his eyes initially but they soon began to adjust.

Morgan gave a short, half laugh, "Yeah, the doctor who was in here earlier said that would probably be the case. At any rate, glad to see you're awake."

"Where's JJ? She was in the car with us on the way here." Reid asked noticing that the blonde agent was nowhere to be seen.

"She had to get back to the station. You've been out for a couple days, man." Morgan said. A couple of days...

"The Unsub killed someone else, didn't he?" Reid felt the blood drain from his face. This was his fault, all his fault. Morgan could see exactly what the boy was thinking; he could read him like a book.

"Reid, man, you can't blame yourself for this." Morgan said softly shaking his head. The young agent stopped speaking and got really quiet for some time.

"When can I go? We need to get back to the precinct." Reid tossed the blankets off of his body but Morgan was quickly there pushing him back into the bed.

"Easy there, Pretty Boy." Morgan said, "You're here for at least another 24 hours. The doctors are still trying to figure out what exactly is wrong with you."

"They still don't know?" Reid asked a little concern.

"No," Morgan answered avoiding eye contact, "They think you might have some underlying condition. They wouldn't tell us since we aren't immediate family."

"What aren't you telling me?" Reid asked knowing that something was being hidden from him.

"Look Reid, I don't think this is my place to tell you." Morgan looked away again. It didn't take a profiler to know that avoidance of eye contact was rarely a good sign, "The doctors advised JJ to stay away at least until you woke up."

"What happened?" Reid asked his heart pounding, his mind racing – what could he have said to warrant such a mandate. Morgan sighed and rubbed a hand over his head.

"You uh...you were really out of it when we first got you here – it scared us. Your fever wasn't too bad but...uh...you were still really out of it. You were saying a lot of things. Bad things, kid. You were hallucinating a lot too."

"What did I say?" Reid asked embarrassed, he could feel tears pricking at his eyes, "Morgan, what did I say when we first got here?"

Derek closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, how the hell was he supposed to explain everything that happened to the kid.

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_"What's his name?" one of the nurses asked as they placed the young agent onto a gurney._

_"Spencer Reid." JJ answered as doctors and nurses quickly buzzed around them. One was taking his blood pressure while another stuck a thermometer into his ear._

_"Do you know his medical history?" Asked a doctor who had come up and joined the medical team, "Any allergies?"_

_"We have all of that information back at the hotel." Morgan answered, "I don't think he has any allergies besides a slight lactose intolerance but..."_

_The straight face doctor nodded and quickly interrupted Morgan once he received the information he needed, "What brought you in here?"_

_"He started vomiting blood earlier today; he's been really out of it for awhile now. High fevers, dizziness, headaches. He fainted and we think he might have hurt his wrist or hand as a result of that fall." JJ said sympathetically looking down at her sick friend. He looked so vulnerable and her heart ached with emotion._

_"Keller, get two milligrams of dihydromorphinone." The doctor said to one of the nurses – Morgan and JJ exchanged a quick knowing glance. The nurse soon returned with a syringe full of a clear substance and began to sterilize a spot on Reid's antecubital._

_Morgan's hand shot up and grasped the nurse's arm before the needle penetrated Spencer's skin, "What is that?"_

_"It's an opiate for the pain."_

_"Don't give it to him." Morgan spoke with force as he protectively maneuvered himself between Reid and the nurse._

_"Sir, please step back" The doctor said as he put a hand forcibly on Morgan's shoulder, "Let us do our job. Your friend appears to be in a lot of pain from his injured wrist and we're just trying to help him."_

_"I want it," a feeble voice suddenly called out. Everyone's heads turned to face the young agent whose eyes had slowly begun to flutter open, "Morgan, I want it. Let them give it to me, please."_

_"Reid, you don't know what you're saying, man" his voice was getting caught up in his own throat as he became overwhelmed by emotion._

_"Stop it, Morgan, let them give it to me. Dihydromorphinone, it's the pharmaceutical name for..." Reid's voice was becoming more distant as he quickly began to fade again, "...dilau..."_

_"You can't give that to him." Morgan said more sternly looking at the doctor; JJ turned her head to the side as she tried to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes and threatening to stain her porcelain cheeks._

_Morgan had seen the kid's struggle with the drug first hand and knew what the repercussions might be if the opiate reentered his system. For the second time that day he thought back to the afternoon he had caught Reid about to shoot up. It wasn't more than two nights after that incident that the boy showed up on Morgan's door step drenched in sweet and shaking uncontrollably. Morgan had spent enough time around the streets of Chicago to know what withdrawal looked like but back then it was homeless junkies who couldn't afford their next fix – not a friend desperately seeking sobriety. He invited the boy to stay with him and Reid graciously spent the following two weeks at the older agent's house as he went through a hellish withdrawal. The shaking, nausea, vomiting – Derek had been there for it all._

_"What's your name, sir?" The doctor asked folding his arms across his chest._

_"Special Agent Derek Morgan."_

_"Well, Special Agent Derek Morgan," the doctor stated in a mocking tone, "I didn't hear an M.D. at the end of that name, so I suggest..."_

_"He used to have a dependency problem." Derek said. He had sworn to Reid that he would never tell anyone but he was running out of options and it was the only thing he could think of. Derek tried to rationalize his actions – the reason Reid didn't want him to tell anyone was only because he didn't want the team to be disappointed in him; back then he was too doped up to notice that they all already knew – you can't hide much from a group of profilers._

_"Excuse me?"_

_"He had a dependency problem with that same stuff – dilaudid. You won't find it on any of his records...it was the result of a case..." Derek sighed and rubbed his hands over his face, "Look, he's a good kid that just got hooked because of circumstances beyond his control. But believe me; you just can't give him that stuff. He's worked too damn hard on being clean to throw it all away because of a hurt wrist."_

_The doctor looked down at the boy who was once more regaining partial consciousness, "We'll hold off on it for now – until we can get him stabilized. If he asks for it then...we'll have to give it to him...if there's no record of the dependency, it becomes your word against his and he's our patient."_

_"I can't feel it," Spencer cried out suddenly realizing his sobriety, "Morgan – what did you tell them?"_

_Reid thrashed on the bed and JJ swiftly walked over to him, "Reid, Morgan is just trying to help."_

_"Wh-what are you doing here?" He suddenly asked wide eyed, looking up at the blonde woman._

_"Kid, what's going on?"_

_"Derek – did you call her here? Why did they let you out of the home – I'm supposed to be the only one allowed to release you."_

_"Do you know who he thinks she is?" The doctor asked turning to Derek._

_"His mother, he did the same thing earlier at the hotel." JJ was still by Reid's side trying to comfort the younger boy._

_"Reid, shh" she hushed soothingly, "It's just me, it's JJ."_

_"Mom...why are they doing this to me, Mama? I just want to go away. I want to go back to that place again."_

_"Reid, what place?"_

_"When I was younger...with you. I want the dihydromorphinone...I took it for you, for us. So I could be with you again – so I could remember you like you were, how you used to be before you got sick..." his voice trailed off as his head fell limply to one side. The doctor sprinted over to him._

_"His fever's spiking, we need to cool him off." Three other medical attendees swarmed the gurney and Reid was quickly rushed off to a back room._

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"After that, anytime JJ would get near you..." Derek's voice trailed off.

"I would think she was my mother." Reid said finishing his sentence.

"Yeah, kid." Morgan said nodding, "It would get you really upset. Something would go wrong whenever she came in here so the doctors suggested that she stay away for awhile. It worked too. Your fever stopped spiking and you stopped hallucinating other things too."

"I'm so sorry," Reid began to cry softly, "Is she mad at me?"

"Not at all."

"Are you mad at me?"

"Not at all, Pretty Boy. There isn't anyone on our team who could be mad at you." Derek smiled trying to ease Spencer's worries, "We've all just been worried about you. Garcia even threatened to come here a couple of times if you didn't wake up soon."

Reid smiled and the two men sat in a blissful silence. It was nice to relax for awhile after the emotionally and physically exhausting past couple of days.

Suddenly Reid looked at Derek with pleading eyes, "They didn't give it to me, did they?"

"No, kid. They never gave you anything."

"Morgan," Reid looked straight into his friend's eyes, that one look saying more than words ever could, "Thank you."

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**It ended up being a little longer than I thought it would be – please let me know what you think! You've already read it, now all you have to do is review ; )**


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